NWDA assets to transfer to HCA

The Government has announced land and property assets owned by Regional Development Agencies will be transferred to the Homes & Communities Agency.

The North West Development Agency is one of nine RDAs in England being closed by March 2012 after the coalition government announced it would be replacing them with local enterprise partnerships.

However, the Government stated in April that the newly formed LEPs or local authorities would not be given land and property assets owned by Regional Development Agencies, but said a majority will be sold on the open market.

In the same month, the North West Development Agency said it planned to sell seven sites on the open market including Borders Business Park in Cumbria, Speke Freeholds in Merseyside, and Wirral International Business Park.

The Department for Business Innovation and Skills said on Wednesday that the HCA will own the assets and liabilities, with local communities involved in decisions about future development plans to maximise the benefits to economic growth and regeneration in their areas.

The HCA told Place that details of the individual assets to be included in the transfer will be announced when the order to transfer has been signed off, which is planned to take effect on 19 September.

Deborah McLaughlin, executive director North West at the HCA, said: "Using our expertise, and working closely with our local authority partners, LEP partners and BIS local, we have developed a locally driven approach meaning that the HCA will hold the assets on behalf of the North West region on a stewardship basis. Importantly, this will ensure that the transferred assets will be used to best meet local economic ambitions.

"To progress this, we will be setting up a stewardship group, made up of a range of local representatives, to maximize the significant opportunities these assets present in terms of increasing private sector investment and creating local jobs."

The Department for Business Innovation and Skills said the majority of RDA land and property assets and liabilities will be transferred to the HCA under the Housing & Regeneration Act 2008.

Business and Enterprise Minister Mark Prisk said: "The transfer of RDA land and property assets to the Homes and Communities Agency underlines our commitment to making sure these assets are used to support economic growth and regeneration.

"Through local enterprise partnerships, the Regional Growth Fund and Enterprise Zones, we are putting in place an efficient and locally driven model of regional economic development that ensures government support goes to where it can have most impact."

The North West Development Agency owns more than 30 assets in the region. The following is a list of the freehold land and property assets owned by the NWDA as at 30 September 2010: